Who ruled before bloody Mary?

Answer 1

When Henry VIII died in 1547, he was succeeded by his 9 year old son, Edward VI. Because of Edward's age, his uncle Edward Seymour (Duke of Somerset) made himself protector and took control. Together with Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, Seymour was determined to make the country Protestant. An Act of Uniformity was proclaimed and a new English Prayer Book produced in 1549. There were some protests and rebellion against this, and the Earl of Warwick -John Dudley, put down the rebellions and was also involved in a power struggle with Edward Seymour, ultimately leading to Seymour's arrest and eventual execution. Dudley became the Duke of Northumberland and took control after Seymour's downfall. Edward VI was never very strong health wise, and it became apparent that he was suffering from tuberculosis and would not live very long. Northumberland seized his chance to persuade the king to name Lady Jane Grey (Northumberland's daughter in law) as his successor, as she was descended from Henry VII the first Tudor king, through her grandmother Princess Mary Rose Tudor, younger sister of Henry VIII. But more importantly she was Protestant, whereas the true successor, Mary Tudor, Henry VIII's oldest daughter, was a staunch Catholic. Edward died on 6 July 1553 and Jane Grey became queen for only 9 days, when support for Mary became overwhelmingly strong, as people wanted to see the rightful heir upon the throne. Lady Jane, her husband, father and father-in-law were all imprisoned and eventually executed under the reign of the new monarch, Mary I (1516 - 1558). Mary went on to gain the nickname "Bloody Mary" because under her rule, around 300 Protestants were burned at the stake for refusing to recant their religious beliefs.

Answer 2

Lady Jane Grey, also known as The Nine Days Queen, was declared queen before Mary. The legitimacy of her claim to the throne was and is disputed although she had been named heir presumptive by the previous monarch, Edward VI. Most people would say Edward was the real predecessor to Mary.